HowRU
Focus : Design Experiment
Duration : 5 Weeks
Tool : ESP-32, Macramé, CAD
Have you ever felt disconnected from the world?
A new planet, a new ecosystem
Throughout our lives, we are inevitably placed into new environments.
In new environment, we hope for comfort.
However, comfort does not always come from other people.
This led me to ask a simple question.
Do we always have to rely on others to feel a sense of belonging?
The goal of this project is to explore how an environment can offer emotional comfort through intuitive physical feedback, while designing a product that reflects and reinforces my sense of identity.
I began by researching shared experiences of disconnection and the desire for responsive environments. Survey results revealed a common sense of emotional isolation and interest in communicative spaces. In response, I built a JavaScript interface to explore how emotional distance could be translated into interaction through proximity.
Immediate feedback and emotional linkage between the user and the product.
Using a ToF distance sensor and wirelessly connected ESP microcontrollers via ESP-NOW, I enabled the lantern to respond dynamically to user proximity in a compact, modular system.
Custom 3D-printed housings and connectors integrated the electronics with the macramé basket and mobile structure.
"How are you?"
HowRU points toward a future where environments are not simply occupied, but actively engaged with. By allowing space to respond to human presence, this project explores new possibilities for emotional interaction within everyday objects.
Location
Providence, RI
02903
2025 Jungsoo Lee